While not confirmed, Brainiac is expected to be the main villain in James Gunn's upcoming Superman sequel, Man of Tomorrow. Many actors would be a good fit for the role, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and Peacemaker star Chukwudi Iwuji has now thrown his name into the hat.
The actor played Clemson Murn in Peacemaker, though we'd later learn that he was really a Butterfly named Ik Nobe Lok. Iwuji later reunited with Gunn on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, where he transformed into the twisted creator of Rocket Raccoon, The High Evolutionary.
Talking to The Movie Dweeb, Iwuji shared his enthusiasm to potentially play one of the DC Universe's greatest threats. "Could I see myself doing it? If James picked up the phone and called me, absolutely. Is it a cool role? You're like the 12th person that's mentioned it. So, I obviously went online and looked and went, 'Oh, wow. This guy is cool.'"
"So, could I see myself if I had the opportunity? I'd jump at it. The 'no' I said is just to let everyone know James hasn't... This isn't me lying to you. I'm so sorry I lied to you but I had to. I was under contract," he continued. "They'd have arrested me, deported me. But this is not lying to you at all. There's absolutely no links whatsoever to Brainiac. And I'm not lying. Okay?"
Superman received positive reviews, but many fans were disappointed when Gunn decided to focus on Lex Luthor (a villain we've seen on screen several times before) and obscure threats like Ultraman and The Engineer, neither of whom had that much in common with their comic book counterparts.
Brainiac would be a fitting choice of villain for the next chapter in the "Superman Saga," particularly as Gunn needs to find a threat big enough for it to make sense that Superman and Lex would put their differences aside to try and save their city from a common foe.
Would Iwuji be a good fit for the character? The role might be a little too similar to what we saw from him in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, but there's no denying that he has all the right attributes to do Brainiac justice.
Gunn was recently asked about the intriguing piece of imagery on Man of Tomorrow's script. "Listen, of course I wasn't unaware that when I posted the cover of the script that there was going to be discussion around that particular topic. But I think we'll hold off from what exactly is happening."
Man of Tomorrow arrives in theaters on July 9, 2027.